So, you have a news business idea? Here’s a great reason to start working on it

If there’s one thing you take away from the second version of the GNI Startups Playbook, released today in partnership with the Google News Initiative, let it be this:

You don’t need to know everything about launching a digital news business to get started — and there’s a lot you can do to test and refine a business idea before you decide to take that leap.

In the new-and-improved GNI Startups Playbook, you’ll find practical advice for understanding your audience and its information needs, building and testing a Minimum Viable Product, communicating your values, developing a revenue strategy, and defining and measuring success, as well as inspiration and resources from founders who’ve already taken these steps.

Need a little extra motivation to get started? Sign up for LION’s News Founder Challenge, a six-week newsletter series that pairs content from the Playbook with a weekly challenge that will help you sharpen your business idea and begin putting it to the test.

An added bonus: Once you complete all six challenges (no matter how long it takes you!), you can sign up for a free one-on-one consulting session with a LION staff member to discuss your idea and make a plan for next steps.

We’re also planning a virtual event in March 2022 to learn from news founders who have successfully built out their ideas, as well as to connect with aspiring founders who are just getting started.

Just sign up for the News Founder Challenge to get an invite to that event once details are finalized, and stay tuned for more founder resources and opportunities throughout the year.